Large Deployable Telescope Components

ABSTRACT: Air Force space missions with optical payloads are limited in their reflective aperture by the diameter of the launch vehicle fairing. EELV class vehicles are very expensive and even then their apertures are limited to less than 5 m. If the smaller launch vehicles like the Minotaur I and IV or Falcon 1e are considered the aperture size is even more limited to less than 2.3m. Future operationally responsive space missions based on imaging platforms need high performance in a smaller spacecraft and launch vehicle to lower system cost. MMA Design proposes to advance the state of the art in deployable optical payloads for a Minotaur class launch vehicle. The proposed effort is based on research that MMA Design has completed previously for a 12m deployable optical payload (forming a Cassegrain telescope) for the Air Force and adapting it to a Minotaur envelope. Small spacecraft capable of being launched on a Minotaur offer significant cost savings. Significant efforts have been completed in the past to deploy extremely large apertures from the biggest launch vehicles in the arsenal. Where a smaller vehicle is desired for responsive missions, there is high value in leveraging past efforts in developing smaller high performance systems. BENEFIT: Potential benefits and impacts to the Air Force mission by developing the proposed system include: 1. Lowering of mission costs for small satellites by allowing the use of Minotaur launch vehicles. 2. Enhance the ISR capabilities of small satellites. 3. Enable rapid deployment of surveillance assets through small spacecraft with plug and play capabilities, enhancing operationally responsive missions